This blog was about my 28,000 mile, 12 week trip around the USA and Canada seeing 53 shows of Roger Waters performing "The Wall" in 2010. A further 18,600 miles in 2011 seeing 43 shows in Europe. In 2012 i traveled 48,197 miles seeing 9 shows in Buenos Aires & 15 shows in the USA. This week i will start again and travel 13,535 miles seeing shows in Arnhem, Brussels, Padova, Rome, Oslo, Gothenburg, Bucharest, Dublin and Paris and many more!

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Saturday, November 20, 2010

So Tampa, I'm trying not to leave the show reviews too long before i write them otherwise i end up forgetting things like i have now! its just so difficult with the travelling and meeting people and from now on I'm going to make a conscious effort to write reviews of the shows within 24 hours!

So Ralph, Lori, Greg, Mike, Maria,Jack and i all caught the Hotel shuttle bus out to the Embassy suites which was right next to the venue in Tampa. I had a few friends to meet up with there and wasn't sure what time they were getting there. The second i stepped off the hotel shuttle bus a guy walked past, looked at me and said “ are you Simon” i was totally floored and said “yeh” it turns out he was a friend of a good friend of mine, Vernon Fitch. Vernon's written a few books about Floyd and we've been good friends for probably going on 10 years now! i hadn't seen Vernon since the Dark side tour in 2007. Brett had been reading the blog and had recognised me from my pictures!

He joined us on the walk round the the Embassy Suites and we met up with Jeff Post whom i had met up with at several other shows including Detroit and Chicago and had also gone to Jeff's house before the Detroit show for drinks and snacks. He had a couple of friends with him and we all got drinks from the bar and went to sit outside in the warm air! Just as i was having my picture taken with Brett and his friend i felt an hand on my shoulder and turned around and it was Vernon.

Myself with Vernon (right) and Brett (my left) Vernon and Myself

Everyone was introduced to everyone and that alone took a good 10 minutes!! We all drank, talked and took countless pictures.

Pre show meet Tampa

Maria's has always been a party girl and you don't have to wait long till after she has had a few drinks to hear her shouting “PARTY” you just know its her and that the place is gonna start rocking! so how fitting that when her and Jack went to Harry’s little gig last night down in Miami she was given the following!

Tampa hanging out.

Lori and i were drinking Long Island Ices teas, damn they were good but i hadn't had a single thing to eat all day since i left Cape Coral this morning, just two toasted muffins. The cookies that Gary gave me where locked in the car!! So the first drink went straight to my head and i had a great little buzz! i knew i couldn't have another one though or id have been rolling into the show and not remembered a thing! i needed food!I I headed down to the venue with Maria and Jack and once inside i got myself a hot dog, i could feel the bread hitting my stomach and all the alcohol bieng soaked up, it felt great,lol

The venue in Tampa

Once inside i met up with my friend Hassan and Amin whom id been next to for the Ft Lauderdale shows a couple of days earlier, these are two really great guys whom I've had so much fun seeing the shows with and whom feel just as passionate about Rogers music as anyone i can think of.

He had a great t shirt on and here’s his story of how it became:

There's a 4-1/2 hour drive from Miami to Tampa. To be safe, we were planning to leave no later than 2pm. so i go into the closet to look what I'm gonna wear and decide i need a new t shirt. get the banksy book, scan the image, Photoshop, i have extra t shirt transfers and the printer has some ink left in it still. print, do a terrible job cutting the design, iron, and it's done. left 25 minutes after 2pm and parked in front of the venue 7pm sharp. will do a better job next time.

Hassan and his T shirt. Hassan, Dave and Amin.

Dave came out from backstage, spotted me and wondered over, we had a chat about women,lol and a few other things and he posed for the picture above. Within minutes a couple of people had spotted him and a line had formed down to aisle of people wanting pictures and autographs. its really cool when he comes out and see;s me and offers up pictures of himself but i think it gets a bit much when countless people start hassling him, i don't know maybe I'm wrong but i really do appreciate his time, he's a great guy and a great friend. My friend Gary whom id stayed with the night before arrived to see the show about half an hour before the start and i went back and sat with him and had a quick chat, he was looking forward to seeing it again and was about 8th row right on the aisle.

I snapped a picture of Amin and Brent the homeless guy and the three of us then took our seats front row left. It was at this point that i also took the panorama picture below that came out rather cool.

Brent and Amin

Panorama from Tampa.

Within seconds of In The Flesh starting i could tell this was going to be a great show, the sound was incredible! it was SO damn loud, probably the loudest one yet but every instrument was crystal clear!! Hassan, Amin and I all turned and looked at each other i think we all knew at that point that we were in for an amazing show.

Now here's why i shouldn't leave the reviews too late as i forget things! honestly i cant remember any of the problems or technical hitches if there were any but from memory there were a couple. I do remember how good the kids were at this show though! and they were all having a fantastic time!

I don't take the camera to every show as some of the shows i like to enjoy without taking pics, however i got some great shots tonight as can be seen below:
This was probably my favourite one of the tour so far as id seen this picture a few times in my head and tried at several shows to actually get it but hadn't been able to till tonight!

I was loving every minute of tonight's show! the plane came down at the beginning at EXACTLY the right time, the timing was dead on, it hit the wall exactly as the last pyros went up and the last note was played! if your at the front at one of the shows watch the press camera guys that are there for the first 4 tracks. Tonight they were all stood milling around while the trumpet music was playing and not expecting the pyros at the beginning of In The Flesh and you should have seen them all jump when the flares went up!! I've seen this a couple of times and thanks to Hassan for reminding me about it.

Also check out Grahams bass drum skin

At intermission we all hung out and discussed how loud and powerful the show seemed tonight, there was also soooo much energy coming off the stage, i don't think I've ever felt as much at a show.

Everyone sat down for Hey You apart from Amin, as I'm so tall whenever i stand up i can always hear the people behind me complaining and grumbling so i sit down so they are able to see, hey its like 1 of 52 shows for me, its probably the only show they will see so its the least i can do.

The backing guys and Robbie are still doing their head tturning hing when the hummers go round the wall, they've been doing this at most shows but i keep forgetting about it!

Second half of the show seemed like it was in fast forward, before i knew it Comfy Numb had been and gone, as had In The Flesh and we were on Waiting for the Worms! Dave's solo in Comfy Numb was simply stunning, not a single mistake that i could hear.

We were unable to see Dave on top of the wall due to being front row and in a way that makes you concentrate more on the sound and the music rather than watching him actually play!. I love the ending where Roger stands and raises his arms and the drums and amps come up through the stage, its just a shame that so many people don't get to see this due to where they are sat and even people sitting near that can see are just so consumed by what's just happened when Roger hits the wall with his fists that they don't get to see it either, they just completely miss what's going on in front of them!

Instruments rising

There was one slight difference tonight and one addition! When the demon come up and slaps its hand across the whole wall, instead of it turning red it went white and i preferred this and it looks a LOT better. He has also added what looks like a huge post it note projection on the right side of the wall at the end of Run Like Hell, i wasn't able to see exactly what it said but it had a couple of peoples names on and said “ we always remember you” under them, Roger then took his machine gun and shot at the “post it note” after which it fell down to the bottom of the wall. He did this again in Atlanta last night but i missed it again, I'll be ready tomorrow in Houston:)

*** Hassan just e mailed me the following: hey si, the banner that gets thrown over the wall at the end of run like hell has the names of the reuters camera men that were killed in iraq, you know, in the clip that is projected on the wall. Namir Noor el-Deen and Saeed Chmagh. ******

Took a couple more nice shots of Roger during the second half.

It always makes me laugh when I'm on the front rail for a show, as soon as the instruments go down into the stage and the crew have done their thing with taking the instruments and mics off the stage and Roger makes his way over to the right hand side to start the Trial sequence the security always come round the front and move everybody back to their seats and off the rail in preparation for the wall coming down in six or seven minutes time. The look on peoples faces is funny, they have no idea at all what's going to happen and wonder why on earth they are being moved back when they have been stood in the same pace all night!! Then when the wall comes down and they see it actually happening its great to watch the crowds faces and see the amazement in their eyes!

Tonight's wall fall was fantastic, it came down in two sections and the first few rows went forward towards the crowd then the second couple of rows backwards and then the rest of it falling forward.

Amin touching a brick after the wall falling down

The band looked so happy during outside the wall, you can always tell its been a good show by how they look when they come out onstage. They knew it was a good show and you could see that, Dave was so appreciative of the audience as was Roger and the rest of the band. I must say though that G E Smith is an odd one! he never seems to smile or look happy and has the same expression on his face the whole show!

Its hard to decide which was the best show of the tour so far between this one and the first Ft Lauderdale one, i think the first Ft Lauderdale one just took it to be honest, not exactly sure but it had a touch more energy, the crowd were a bit better and the whole show just seemed faultless.

hey si, thanks for the pictures, and everything else. the banner that gets thrown over the wall at the end of run like hell has the names of the reuters camera men that were killed in iraq, you know, in the clip that is projected on the wall. Namir Noor el-Deen and Saeed Chmagh.